Farming the Apartment

When Life Gives You Tangerines, Make Pomanders

Too tired to blog? Basically, yeah. It’s the hell time at the work place. And it’s hard to believe that Christmas is in just four days. But we have been doing things recently, even Christmas-y, seasonally appropriate things in real life. We got the tree the Saturday after Thanksgiving per usual, and decorated the house.

Money for a whole house worth of outdoor lighting wasn’t in the budget this year, so we’re winging it. I’m hoping to pick up some outdoor light sets and pieces at the post-Christmas sales this year, naturally. It was important to me to do some kind of outdoor-visible lighting this year though so I’m making magic with battery-operated candles. Low-key Scandinavian feel, let’s call it. I’ve got Dollar Tree faux tapers in all of the windows (which I totally forgot to photograph).

And my pride and joy items are these lovely little lanterns. I’ve got four in total; two on each street-facing porch. I actually scored these lanterns in the post-Halloween clearance for 50% off a Target. One of my favorite holiday clearance scores yet, since they’re plain black and can be used year-round. The only thing seasonal about them was the black and orange price tag! I got them for just $9.00 each. $72 worth of lanterns for just $36? Seriously, a major score. The second I saw them in the store I knew just how I wanted to trick them out for Christmas – with red jingle bells and ribbons!

Naturally, the ribbon and bells were deals as well – the ribbon I had in my stash, picked up in the post-Valentine’s Day clearance. If I recall correctly, I got it at Hobby Lobby for 70% off for just $1.20 for a whole spool. And the jingle bells I got for $3.50 a tube at 50% off at Hobby Lobby. I grabbed a tube for each lantern, so thinking in full price terms, I got two for free! So all in the lanterns ran me about $13 for the Christmas display, but I almost don’t even want to count the price of the lantern since I can literally use them all year.

We also picked up some greenery when we got the tree, so I made two door wreaths. The wreath hanger was another post-Halloween 50% off find – a heavy-duty black hanger for just $1.50, and all because it had that little black and orange tag. Love it. Post-Halloween clearance nets my best all-purpose scores of the year. I wanted to add something to the wreaths like battery-operated white lights. I thought I had some in my decorating supplies but apparently I don’t, and I didn’t find any at a good price. I did find some more of red glittered “berries” on clearance at Hobby Lobby for $0.80 per stem last week, so I picked up a dozen and added some to the wreaths, as well as some indoor cedar arrangements I made up.

I also made a planter box with some of the greenery. The glittered “berries” I had from last year (a 50% Michaels deal – $1 each!) and the battery-operated candles I picked up at Target in last year’s post-Christmas clearance, for 70% definitely, though I might have scored those at 90%. Can’t remember the percentage exactly, or the price I paid, though I know it was super low because my price point thresh hold for stuff like overpriced battery-operated candles is rock bottom.

And here’s a picture of the complete side porch. I think it turned out pretty nice overall –

Lest you think we spent the entire weekend outdoors freezing in the cold, we did have some indoor pursuits as well. Little Man and I baked some cute little gingerbread houses using the Nordicware pan I picked up on – you guessed it – Target post-Christmas clearance last year. Believe I paid around $6 for that little gem, at 70% off. Little Man really got a kick out of the powdered sugar “snow”. They’re almost too cute to eat!

And last but not least, what do you do with an entire box of tangerines that a shall-remain-nameless toddler begs you to buy, eats three, and then rejects the rest? Friends, if life gives you tangerines, you make pomanders.

Let that be a lesson to all of you. You can make the best out of a lot of things if you have too. And that is Christmas at Apartment (House!?) Farm so far this year.